Home › Irish Surnames › Madden

Irish surname

Madden: Irish Surname History & Coat of Arms

Ó Madáin; Ó Madaidhín; Mac an Mhadaidh · Ó Madáin, 'descendant of Madadhán' (diminutive of madadh, a dog); Mac an Mhadaidh, 'son of the dog'

Woulfe (1923) gives Madden as the anglicised form of Ó Madáin, now generally Ó Madaidhín: the O'Maddens of Siol nAnmchadha in south-east Galway, a branch of the Ui Maine of the same stock as the O'Kellys. He says the old Mayo name Mac an Mhadaidh is 'now very often incorrectly anglicised Madden, with which it is partly synonymous'. In 1890 Madden births were chiefly in Galway, Cork, Dublin and Antrim.

Shop Madden crest giftsRead the history
Coat of arms associated with the Madden surname
Irish formÓ Madáin; Ó Madaidhín; Mac an Mhadaidh
MeaningÓ Madáin, 'descendant of Madadhán' (diminutive of madadh, a dog); Mac an Mhadaidh, 'son of the dog'
CountiesGalway, Offaly, Cork, Dublin
Other spellings1

Origin of the Madden name

Woulfe: the O'Maddens were a distinguished branch of the Ui Maine in Co. Galway. Siol nAnmchadha became independent about the middle of the 11th century, and its chieftaincy stayed 'in almost unbroken succession' with the O'Maddens until the mid-17th century. Their lands were the barony of Longford, south-east Galway, and a parish across the Shannon in present Offaly.[1]

  1. About the middle of the 11th centurySiol nAnmchadha, a sub-division of the Ui Maine, becomes independent.[1]
  2. 16th centuryAn O'Madden offshoot (Ó Madagáin, Madigan) settles in Clare and Limerick.[4]
  3. 1612Donal O'Madden, 'captain of his nation', settles Longford castle and estates on his son.[1]
  4. 1677John O'Madden's confiscated property partly restored under the Act of Settlement.[1]
  5. 1690'O MADDEN' appears in Sir James Terry's list of Irish septs.[6]
  6. 1691Five of the name attainted.[1]
  7. 1890107 Madden births registered (incl. varieties), chiefly Galway, Cork, Dublin, Antrim.[5]

Where in Ireland

Co. GalwayO'Madden lands of Siol nAnmchadha, barony of Longford; first Madden county in 1890.[1][5]
Co. OffalyThe O'Madden clan-lands included the parish of Lusnagh (Woulfe's spelling), across the Shannon.[1]
Co. CorkAmong the counties where Madden was principally found in 1890.[5]
Co. DublinPrincipal Madden county in 1890; Woulfe names an Anglo-Irish Madden family of Baggotrath, near Dublin.[5][1]
Co. AntrimPrincipal Madden county in 1890; Woulfe says the Antrim O'Maddens are probably a distinct family.[5][1]
Co. MayoMac an Mhadaidh, 'an old Mayo surname', is 'now very often incorrectly anglicised Madden'.[3]

Notable people named Madden

Samuel Madden1686–1765'Premium Madden', Dublin-born clergyman and writer, one of the founders of the Royal Dublin Society.[7][8]
Richard Robert Madden1798–1886Surgeon and writer, son of a Dublin silk manufacturer; best known for 'The United Irishmen, their Lives and Times' (1843–6).[9]

Other spellings

O'Madden[1][2]

The Madden coat of arms

The name appears as 'O MADDEN' in the 'List of Names of Irish Septs as given in the Book of Arms, compiled by Sir James Terry, Athlone Herald (1690)', as printed by Matheson. The list gives sept names only; it does not describe any arms, and it does not mean that everyone named Madden is entitled to a coat of arms.[6]

The design shown is a coat of arms associated with the Madden surname. In Irish and British heraldry a coat of arms is granted to one person and passes to their heirs; it does not belong to everyone who shares the surname. Many families still use the arms of their name as a symbol of their heritage.

Madden crest gifts

Clan Omadden Coat Of Arms - Irish Family Crest Classic Cap VL76 Omadden Coat Of Arms Irish Cap Omadden Coat Of Arms - Irish Family Crest Classic Cap$33.45Clan Omadden Coat Of Arms - Irish Family Crest St Patrick's Day Classic CapCY86 Classic Cap - Omadden Coat Of Arms St Patrick's Day Classic Cap Irish Cap Omadden Coat Of Arms - Irish Family Crest St Patrick's Day Classic Cap$42.45Clan Madden Coat Of Arms - Irish Family Crest St Patrick's Day Classic CapQE88 Classic Cap - Madden Coat Of Arms St Patrick's Day Classic Cap Irish Cap Madden Coat Of Arms - Irish Family Crest St Patrick's Day Classic Cap$42.45

Madden surname: questions

What does the surname Madden mean?

Woulfe gives Madden as a form of Ó Madáin, 'descendant of Madadhán', a diminutive of madadh, a dog. The Mayo name Mac an Mhadaidh, which Woulfe says is often incorrectly anglicised Madden, means 'son of the dog'.[1][3]

Is Madden an Irish name?

Yes. Woulfe gives it as the anglicised form of Ó Madáin, the O'Maddens of south-east Galway, and says the Mayo name Mac an Mhadaidh is also 'very often incorrectly anglicised Madden'. He adds there is reason to believe the Anglo-Irish Maddens, formerly of Baggotrath near Dublin, are a branch of the Galway O'Maddens.[1][3]

Where in Ireland is the Madden name from?

The O'Madden homeland was Siol nAnmchadha: the barony of Longford in south-east Galway and a parish in present Offaly. In 1890 Madden births were chiefly in Galway, Cork, Dublin and Antrim.[1][5]

Are the O'Maddens related to the O'Kellys?

Woulfe says the O'Maddens are of the same stock as the O'Kellys, with whom they originally formed one clan, the Ui Maine.[1]

Sources

  1. Ó Madáin — Irish Names and Surnames (Rev. Patrick Woulfe, 1923), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/names/om/o-madain.php
  2. Ó Madaidhín — Irish Names and Surnames (Rev. Patrick Woulfe, 1923), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/names/om/o-madaidhin.php
  3. Mac an Mhadaidh — Irish Names and Surnames (Rev. Patrick Woulfe, 1923), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/names/maca/mac-an-mhadaidh.php
  4. Ó Madagáin — Irish Names and Surnames (Rev. Patrick Woulfe, 1923), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/names/om/o-madagain.php
  5. Madden — Birth Indexes of 1890 — Special Report on Surnames in Ireland (Robert E. Matheson, 1909), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/matheson/report/births/madden.php
  6. List of Names of Irish Septs (Terry, 1690) — Special Report on Surnames in Ireland (Robert E. Matheson, 1909), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/matheson/report/irish-septs.php
  7. Samuel Madden — A Compendium of Irish Biography (Alfred Webb, 1878), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/biography/SamuelMadden.php
  8. Madden, Samuel — Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, vol. 35 (Thompson Cooper, 1893), Wikisource. en.wikisource.org/wiki/Dictionary_of_National_Biography,_1885-1900/...
  9. Madden, Richard Robert — Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, vol. 35 (James McMullen Rigg, 1893), Wikisource. en.wikisource.org/wiki/Dictionary_of_National_Biography,_1885-1900/...

Note: Matheson's 1890 figures for a surname include its spelling varieties (Matheson, Table Explanation).